Boulevard Living With a Rare Side Driveway: 2054 N. Humboldt Blvd in Logan Square
This 4-bedroom single family home at 2054 N. Humboldt Boulevard in Logan Square recently came on the market.
Built in 1912 it is on a larger than standard Chicago lot of 40×164. The lot is so big it has a rare side driveway from the street that leads to a 2-car brick garage.
The house has a lot of its original woodwork including crown molding.
The kitchen appears to have granite counter tops and upscale appliances like Wolf, Bosch and SubZero.
The house has 4 bedrooms on the second floor (but the listing does state that one of them doesn’t have a closet.)
There is a finished lower level.
The house has central air.
It is listed just $17,000 above the 2004 price.
Is this house priced to sell?
Edward Jelinek at Coldwell Banker has the listing. See the pictures here.
2054 N. Humboldt: 4 bedrooms, 3 baths, no square footage listed, 2 car garage
- Sold in July 2004 for $860,000
- Originally listed in May 2012 for $879,000
- Currently still listed at $879,000
- Taxes aren’t listed
- Central Air
- Bedroom #1: 22×14 (second floor)
- Bedroom #2: 13×12 (second floor)
- Bedroom #3: 10×9 (second floor)
- Bedroom #4: 9×9 (second floor)
- Family room: 29×12 (lower level)
Love the house, if it were at a 50% discount I’d buy it.
my first apartment was a few doors south on this block. Very quiet street. I believe the building on the corner of Armitage and Humboldt is section 8 though had more trouble from the tennants of one of the middle apartment buildings always throwing their trash in our yard. Nothing on Armitage back then except a liquor store and a video shop.
This is a beautiful home! I was really loving it until I saw the second floor layout. Very little storage and no master bath or even two sinks in the common bath. I still think it is gorgeous though.
Living on a street named Humboldt sounds scary to me.
“BIG UPs” to the Realtor on this fantastic listing – 32 great photos AND a floor plan. Well done.
Beautiful home. Can’t comment on location/price. How are the schools in this ‘hood?
Would it be feasible to convert one of the smaller 4th bedrooms into another full bath and perhaps closet and make the existing bath an on-suite for the master?
Or would that ruin the appeal/price of the 4 bedroom home?
The schools in this hood are not good. This is why its 800K not more. You are not paying for good schools. You need to pay less for the house to pay for private.
Looks like currently no property taxes because it’s being used as a religious property of some sort. I wouldn’t want to get a first tax assessment for a new purchase on a big lot in the current environment, especially because you’re probably not getting any credit for prorated taxes at closing.
This is a nice property and being on the boulevard is really nice, but that far southwest in Logan Square is far from ideal. Realistically, I think that this needs to get to the mid 700s or lower in this environment. Like I’ve argued before, in this price range you can get big properties in good areas with good schools these days.
9×9 isn’t a bedroom. It’s a closet. 10×9 is also a closet. This home basically has 2 bedrooms and two offices. I don’t know why the owners think they are more special than everyone else and that their home as appreciated where almost everyone else’s has declined. The sellers should also take down the religious iconography. I would assume that someone with a huge crucifix in their entryway is unreasonable and not inclined to make a deal.
This place, which is under contract and which I realize differs in important respects, comes to mind:
http://www.redfin.com/IL/Chicago/3052-W-Palmer-Blvd-60647/home/13418396
You can still get a tax credit–it just won’t be based on a historical value. Most likely the tax credit would be higher than what you would get based on last full tax year because most of the properties in the area are under assessed. And I think this goes within 10% of list price. The area around Palmer Square has gentrified quite a bit over the past few years.
“Would it be feasible to convert one of the smaller 4th bedrooms into another full bath and perhaps closet and make the existing bath an on-suite for the master?”
“Or would that ruin the appeal/price of the 4 bedroom home?”
I don’t know how feasible or how expensive, but having a master bath and a second bath up has got to be more attractive to most people. Do you really want to live with 4 beds occupied with one bath? Yeah, I know everyone used to do it, but I don’t think anyone wants to now.
“I don’t know how feasible or how expensive, but having a master bath and a second bath up has got to be more attractive to most people. Do you really want to live with 4 beds occupied with one bath? Yeah, I know everyone used to do it, but I don’t think anyone wants to now.”
People also want upstairs laundry rooms. In one of the houses we took a pass on, we considered expanding the master bedroom by reducing one of the smaller bedrooms to make a stairway to the attic. This would have left a room too small to be much beyond a very small office so a laundry room would have been a logical choice, assuming the plumbing worked out. Moot as we took a pass on the home.
“People also want upstairs laundry rooms.”
Agreed. It’s close to mandatory for us. Once you’ve had upstairs laundry, it’s hard to go back. That said, there are many $800+ houses w/o upstairs laundry, but prob few w/o two baths up outside of *really* expensive neighborhoods.
Two baths (Master & Hall Bath) is a HUGE benefit. We pretty much bought our house in OP based on that alone as it is was extremely hard to find this feature at our price point. Not too mention a Master bath big enough for dual sinks. I do wish we had an upstairs laundry though instead of basement, but it really isn’t that big of a deal imho.
I meant two baths on upper level…
At the risk of offending, I’d say to Jenny that I’d be more likely to assume that someone with a huge crucifix (or any religious symbol) in their entry hall is unreasonable. I’m not trying to single out Catholics. I’m just saying that people of any religion who feel so strongly about it that they advertise their beliefs in such a way would tend to be rather strong minded once they get an idea in their head.
Beautiful house. Move it to another neighborhood and I’m all over it.
“Or would that ruin the appeal/price of the 4 bedroom home”
I think that the investment to add a master/closet/laundry really all comes down to one thing. HOw long are you planning to stay in the property and what is that change worth to YOU? If it is important to you (as suggested above by several comments on laundry rooms up) then go for it. The upside is that the home will work better for your needs. That will likely mean that you stay longer. In the end staying in the home longer will allow for the likelihood of a well done rehab paying off greater in ROI. If you plan to do that remodel and sell in the next few years than it will likely only return a smaller percentage of the investment.
Re the crucifix – it reminds of the Amityville Horror house. Strongly suggests the house has a demon problem.
” that people of any religion who feel so strongly about it that they advertise their beliefs in such a way would tend to be rather strong minded once they get an idea in their head.”
It’s really no different than someone having a poster of their favorite sports team. Some fans will argue that their team is the best no matter what, others will admit they suck a particular season (s).
Looking at the floor plan, isn’t this a 5 bedroom house? Five bedrooms on the second floor, three of which are a good size. Definitely sacrifice one of the smaller ones for a bathroom.
Icarus,
Agree re. sports fans, but I’ve never heard an ultra-religious person admit that their religion sucks. Most are convinced that theirs is the only valid one and that everyone else is at best wasting their time or at worst on their way to hell. Religions, unlike sports teams, don’t have bad seasons.
Dan #2,
Agree re: ultra-religious that becomes zealous. Displaying some icons of one’s faith doesn’t make one a zealot. It may seem like a lot to you and Jenny because these items are not part of your life (perfectly valid). The items seen here and in some previous listing are actually quite modest and normal for a typical catholic/christian/spaghetti worshipper. Lot’s of times these items have been passed along through family or given as gifts and they have no more meaning to the recipient that the painting of dogs playing poker.
Perhap’s the rule of thumb should be as long as the room cannot be mistaken for an altar, confessional or rectory, it’s not unreasonable.
I have to agree with the crucifix comment. I watched too many scary movies growing up, and any old house with a large cross hanging on the wall gives me the creeps. It just makes the whole house seem like it is made for a church lady / grandma figure. Like everyone else does when they are listing houses, take down a lot of the nic naks and personal items, they just turn off potential buyers.
Icarus,
Maybe you’re right. I reserve judgment until I meet the owner, I suppose. Not that I’m going to meet them in this case, of course. It just gives me pause that they’d display such an item so publicly. If it was just a hand-me-down or a gift and they didn’t feel really, really strongly about the religion, they’d put it in their bedroom or somewhere, not in the front hall.
I agree with LG that people should take down these sort of knick knacks when they try to sell, or when they rent out a furnished place. We stayed in a cottage in Wisconsin last year and the owner had a large crucifix on the wall, which made my family and me a little uncomfortable. So I climbed up on a chair to take it down, and unfortunately I dropped it and it broke. We left an apologetic note offering to pay, but never heard back.
It is funny how buyers have a hard time seeing past paint colors, crucifixes, bad decorating, etc. I am not religious at all and it doesn’t really bother me. It isn’t like it will be there if you buy the house.
At the same time, I’d imagine Realtors often struggle with trying to tell owners their personal items/pictures and decorating are turning off buyers. Kind of like a teacher telling a parent their kid is below average I’d imagine.
“Looking at the floor plan, isn’t this a 5 bedroom house? Five bedrooms on the second floor, three of which are a good size. Definitely sacrifice one of the smaller ones for a bathroom.”
Yeah, the floorplan definitely shows 5 bedrooms. Maybe the realtor is assuming the buyer will take the 10×9.5 bedroom next to the bathroom to create a master bath/hallway bath. That would leave the buyer with 3 nice bedrooms and one small one without moving too much plumbing. Going from a 5 to 4 bedroom house doesn’t seem nearly as bad to me as going from 4 to 3.
On the whole crucifix thing, didn’t JJJ say this property has a religious exemption from taxes? Obviously the owners are a little religious and displayed it for a reason. However, I don’t think that will determine whether they are willing/not willing to negotiate.
Anyways, as Russ said, it won’t stay after they sell it, so why care?
If it were a Jewish star, on the other hand, I’m sure we’d be hearing from Helmut about how this neighborhood is turning into a “JAP” enclave.
“Yeah, the floorplan definitely shows 5 bedrooms. Maybe the realtor is assuming the buyer will take the 10×9.5 bedroom next to the bathroom to create a master bath/hallway bath.”
I think the realtor is not counting the front small room, which is v small and doesn’t have a closet. I think he meant to say in listing that in addition to the 4 beds there’s an additional upstairs room w/o closet, but it’s confusing the way it’s written.
“I think the realtor is not counting the front small room, which is v small and doesn’t have a closet. I think he meant to say in listing that in addition to the 4 beds there’s an additional upstairs room w/o closet, but it’s confusing the way it’s written.”
Looking further, the room listing is v odd. He lists 4 beds and an office upstairs, but he’s calling the front 12.5 X 12.5 room an office, and the 9.5 X 9 room a bed, which seems like the wrong way around.
How do you know it won’t stay? They might leave it to convert others. My friend’s cleaning lady keeps displaying an old picture of jesus that was owned by her grandma and kept in a drawer. Every time the cleaning lady is there, she puts the jesus picture back up on the shelf.
The house I grew up in had a mezuzah in the doorway. It just looked like decoration and it was a long time before I noticed or knew what it was for.
In this tough market it probably is prudent to follow the Tennants of Staging and remove any items that might give a potential buyer a reason to pass on your home. It’s possible that removing the item leaves holes in the wall and at the time of picture taking they were left but then instructions to remove and spackle & paint were given.
“this property has a religious exemption from taxes? ”
On the other hand, what would be necessary to continue on that excemption?
Jenny, if they left it and you bought this home then you could take it down and burn it which I am sure would satisfy your hatred for it.
“How do you know it won’t stay? They might leave it to convert others. My friend’s cleaning lady keeps displaying an old picture of jesus that was owned by her grandma and kept in a drawer. Every time the cleaning lady is there, she puts the jesus picture back up on the shelf.
The house I grew up in had a mezuzah in the doorway. It just looked like decoration and it was a long time before I noticed or knew what it was for.”
“Looking further, the room listing is v odd. He lists 4 beds and an office upstairs, but he’s calling the front 12.5 X 12.5 room an office, and the 9.5 X 9 room a bed, which seems like the wrong way around”
From the realtors website, the 9.5×9 room is a bedroom perfect for a nursery or guest as it does not have a closet and the 12.5×12.5 room is an office because of the built in shelving.
They needed to eliminate the back staircase to create a master suite appropriate for a house in this price point.
” Religions, unlike sports teams, don’t have bad seasons”
Yeah but priests sure can have “off games.” Ever been in a church and thought that the priest was out late on Saturday night and now was winging the homily. I have been to that service many times.
IF it gets me out of paying the property taxes the cross can stay as far as Im concerned!
Menorah on piano in pic 4, perhaps undercutting the uncompromising-religious-zealot thesis advanced above.
Seems like master bath would be easy to install on other side of wall from bath, leaving plenty of space in the bedroom. Common rooms are nice and roomy. Price seems like a stretch.
Palmer Square (the park) is quite nice, and the listing on Palmer mentioned above is really something else — from the front porch you look right into the heart of the park. That will be a happy buyer. This block of Humboldt is kind of humdrum and possibly annoying, as it’s where southbound gearheads start their acceleration. I guess grassy strip of blvd insulates somewhat. Not on many pedestrians’ trips to or from anywhere, so no interesting street life, good or bad.
Live in the neighborhood and was told the house is owned by the Franciscan Brothers, so that explains the cross at least…
Under no circumstances would I tell a home seller to remove any decor that reveals or suggests the religious or ethnic background of the family. If a potential buyer has a problem with mezuzahs, crucifixes, Buddah shrines or pictures or a daughter’s 15th birthday celebration, well, that’s THEIR problem! Get over it already!
OTOH I do think homeowners should be mindful of their art collections. Those “tasteful nudes” displayed throughout the main living spaces may suggest something else to your curious neighbors at the open-house.
BTW, there is a menorah on the piano.
It’s an order of Franciscan Friars. As far as being unreasonable price wise, that is ridiculous. They are only asking $17k above what they bought it for 8 years ago.
BTW looking at this another way it appears that there would be ample room to add sq. footage along either side of the building. Start with a new garage facing the alley but I would still keep the curb cut in front for a small driveway and extra parking.
I’d add a second entryway addition off of the dining area. It would allow access to front and the back. Close off the kitchen door allowing you to extend the cabinets along that wall. Extend the deck And on the 2nd floor a true master bath can be added. Money might not make sense but it would be awesome!
“Start with a new garage facing the alley but I would still keep the curb cut in front for a small driveway and extra parking.”
I tried that once and it didn’t pass zoning even though you see it around.
Dahliachi – did they object about leaving the curb cut? Then I’d suggest building the new garage with openings on both sides. And later knock out the driveway from the back of the garage to the back of the home. Noticed that the building to the north has a driveway adjacent so there’s no room to build on that side.